Mail appliance.



W. H. NHLLEVILLE.

MAIL APPLIANCE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.I4. 191s.

Patented Nov. 6, 1917.

WILLIAM H. i/IILLEVILLE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

'MAIL APPLIANCE,

Specification of Letters Patent. I Patented NOV. 6,- 1917.

Application,filedAug'ust 14, 1915. Serial No. 45,455.

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, IVILLIAM H. MILLE- VILLE,"L citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail Appliances, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in mail appliances, and has for its object the provision of means for facilitating the delivery of mail.

The invention consists in the combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

The invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, and in which,

Figure 1 is a face view of apparatus embodying my invention,

Fig. 2, a vertical section of the same, and

Fig. 3, an enlarged horizontal section of signal apparatus employed in the construction.

The preferred form of construction, as illustrated in the drawing, comprises a mail box 4 having the usual opening 5 for the in sertion of mail therein and the usual swinging closure plate 6 cotiperating with said opening. The closure plate 6 carries an electric contact 7 arranged to engage another electric contact 8 when closure plate 6 is swung to position to permit the entry of mail into the box 4. 'A guard lipor flange 6 is arranged on the inner wall of mail box 4 immediately below opening 5 and cooperates with plate 6 to insure suiiicient swinging of said plate to effect engagement between contacts 7 and 8 before mail can be deposited in mail box 4. Contacts 7 and 8 are connected in circuit with a battery 9 and an electro-magnet 10 by means of wires 11, 12 and,

13, so that upon closing of the circuit by engagement of contact 7 with contact 8, electro-magnet 10 will become excited or energized, as will be readily understood. By this arrangement, it will be observed, that 'upon deposit of mail in the box 4, the magnet 10 will be automatically excited or energized.

The appliance is designed primarily for use in apartment buildings to notify occupants of apartments that mail has been deposited in their mail box, said mail box being usually located on the first fioor of such buildings and generally considerable distances from the corresponding; apartments;- To effect this, a magnet 10 connected as explained above with the corresponding mail box is located in the corresponding flat or apartment in any convenient location. A horizontally swinging armature 14 is arranged to cooperate with magnet 10 and carries a stop pin 15 upon which a swinging signal 16 normally rests, said signal 16 swinging behind a slot 17 in the outer face of a suitable box 18 fixed in the wall of the apartment in any usual or desired manner. Signal 16 is pivoted on a handle extending through the outer face of box 18 by means of which the signal may be readily reset for use. By this arrangement when mail is deposited in the corresponding mail box, the circuit through magnet 10 will be closed thus Withdrawing pin 15 and permitting signal 16 to swing down behind slot 17 where it will be visible and serve to give notice of the presence of mail in the mail box. whereupon said mail may be removed when desired. I

I have illustrated my construction in conjunction with speaking mouth pieces 19 and 20 connected by an ordinary speaking tube 21 with which mail boxes are usually associated in such buildings but such arrangement constitutes no part of my present invention and no claim is made thereto.

In case the apparatus already described gets out of order, I provide a push. button 22 connected by wires 23 and 24 in circuit with battery 9 and electro-magnet 10 and whereby the signal may be operated by the postman in case the signaling arrangement described above is defective for any reason. Obviously, this push button signal may, if desired, be used independently of the automatic signal above described, or such automatic signal may be used independently of said push button signal.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred forms of construction for carrying my invention into effect, these are capable of variation and modification without departing from the spirit of the invention. I, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the precise details of construction set forth, but desire to avail myself of such variations and modifications as come within the scope of the appended claim.

outer Wall; a handle member extending through and pivotally mounted in said Wall above said sight opening; a combined signal and stop armmounted on said handle member to swing substantially parallel to the inner face of said Wall and cooperating With said sight opening; an armature provided Copies of this patent may be obtained for with a stop arranged to engage and support sald arm away from said opening; and an eleotro-magnet arranged to operate said ar- 15 mature to release said arm, substantially as described.

Intestimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

WILLIAM H. MILLEVILLE.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR A. OLsoN, HELEN F. LILLIS.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents;

Washington, D. 0. V V 

